A Hidden Heart Slowly Falling Apart
by yello13
Summary: He left her heart aching. He left her with invisible silent tears to cry. She wouldn't break down in front of the kids but she let the possibility sink in. The possibility that Jethero wasn't coming back. This how the family coped with Gibbs leaving in Hiatus but from Jenny's perspective as she looked at her family falling apart. Jenny/Abby Mother/Daughter Read and Review Please


**A/N I think every N.C.I.S should have their own Hiatus story because it can be told in so many ways. So I chose to tell how they coped with Gibbs leaving especially Jenny as she watched how it affected the team. There are some Jenny/Abby moments because you guys know how I adored these types of moments. Reviews are appreciated and make my day so go head and give me feedback.**

**Jenny**

For the first couple of weeks I think everyone was astonished that Jethero hadn't come back for his little girl, yet somehow we adjusted to the favorite's unlikely behavior. We did our job and that was the end of that no questions asked. Tony of course although he didn't want to, led the team through the internal trials they were having. In all he was trying to be brave, for the team as Jethero himself would do.

So everyone avoided the tingling feeling in their hearts, telling them to go find their friend their leader, their father figure.

Ziva, she avoided the thought, the questions, and the feelings. She did as she was taught to do, avoid, acting like everything was OK. In a way that was her way of coping, she need to stay away from those feelings in fear that if she found them she would break down. If she let her feelings go she wouldn't be able to breathe and to live is to breathe. I would sometimes catch her staring at one of the pictures Abby held on her computer. I could see the longing she wouldn't admit that she was feeling. The longing Daddy's little girl held who was waiting patiently.

McGee did as was taught, he walked it off. Although the girls were taking it harder you could tell they were still feeling the aftershock that Jethero's Earthquake had caused. They put on brave faces but you could see McGee was missing Jethero like a boy would miss his father. Like A son waiting patiently for his dad to come home.

He was gone; he left, left her broken and afraid. He left her waddling in her despair, depressed. Everyone had noticed it. Everyone noticed because Abby was no longer happy, she was so numb she was no longer living. She went through her work automatically almost robotically. The difference had shown for the first couple of weeks as she adjusted. As things changed, one thing that changed was that her lab was silent; nothing was to be played, not a peep. Her sense of style had changed, as she became more vulnerable. No one was allowed to call her Abbs, and she became more tolerant of her birth given name of Abigail. The only thing that did remain the same was her amount of Caf! Pows that team came rolling in, if not double. Even then every time she realized Jethero wasn't the one bringing in the caffeinated drink you could see the hurt I her eyes. She didn't leave the office and she almost never slept, when she did it was out of necessity not of want. She tried to drown herself in work but in reality, we all knew she was just waiting for Jethero to come back, we all were. Like daddy's favorite who was waiting patiently for her Hero to come home.

It was until one personal case did Abby finally break down. We tried our best but, we couldn't seem to stop Alexi Watson a 28 year old from killing his ex-girlfriend and Abby's best friend Sasilvia. She tried so hard to mask her pain although inside she was begging for Jethero to come and rescue her, to wrap her in her arms and save her.

It was then that I found her in the corner of her Lab room seeming to be talking to the air until I noticed she was looking at a picture of Gibbs. Her comfort object, Bert the farting hippo was being held in her hands as she let the long awaited tears fall to the ground.

"Hey Gibbs, I know it's only been a month but, I-I-I need you, I miss you, I need help, somebody. I know I have the team but, Daddy things are not the same when you're away. Mommy, I mean Jenny, she misses you too. I want to call you but I know I can't. And I know I have asked you this question a million times but I just want to know why you left. Why did you leave?" As she rambled her tears became more frantic to come out of her eyes and her makeup layered under her eyes. "I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND!" she said while throwing Bert across the floor and hugging herself as she cried.

It was then that I flew into action.

I threw my arms around her which she fought against but I held her close. "Honey, it wasn't –"

"I don't understand."

"Ok, you're Ok" I began rocking her as I stroked her untangled hair. "Hey it's Ok" I watched her tears begin to settle.

"I just want to know when daddy's coming home, when is daddy coming home?"

"Sweetheart I don't know." I answered truthfully; honestly I had been asking that question quite a bit. When was Jethero coming home? He had to know his family was falling apart

"Do you think he's ever coming back?"

I answered the only way I knew how, by answering by what I believe and somewhere in my heart I believed he was coming back. I believed that he would come back to his family and that he would pick up the broken pieces and fix what he broke.

"Yes, Abby I do think he is coming back."

I watched as she fell asleep letting my girls head rest on my chest, as she hugged me, afraid I would leave too.

_And I lived as my family slowly picked the puzzle pieces up, even though they could not put it together _

_And I listened as each one of their hearts broke._

_And like a K9 I smelt the fear they were feeling,_

_And with my instincts I felt the feeling that were not spoken_

_And I stuck like glue with undetectable eyes_

_So they wouldn't know mommy was broken. _

_I held their hands _

_Just as planned _

_As I kept my head up and stayed strong_

_And I comforted my little ones_

_With mother's touch so they wouldn't know everything was going wrong._

_And when they cried by my side_

_With rheumy and red eyes_

_Although Polite and genuine manners _

_It still broke my heart when the question_

"_When is daddy coming home?"_

_And the subject was always left unanswered._

_And once again I found myself playing my instinctive part_

_To cover up the lies and despair_

_To save my children's heart_

_To stay strong and put on a happy face_

_I wouldn't let them know I was falling apart._


End file.
